What went down at Lux Style Awards 2018

From honouring luminaries to providing much-needed comic relief, the ceremony was ‘all that’

KARACHI: Last night witnessed one of the biggest events in Pakistan – the 17th Lux Style Awards. There were stars, there was glamour and there was excitement, with a whole lot more. Here’s a rundown on what went on…

PHOTO: PUBLICITY

A-listers from the fashion and entertainment industry walked the red carpet wearing incredible ensembles, leaving us stunned. Meera Jee was one of the first to grace the red carpet, donning a Sadia Mirza piece. Next, was Lux girl Mawra Hocane who strutted in wearing Manish Malhotra followed by the couple of the hour, Ahad Raza Mir and Sajal Aly who opted for traditional wear, just like Hamza Ali Abbasi and Mahira Khan.

PHOTO: PUBLICITY

The evening started off with a performance by Pakistan’s most famous kathak dancer, Nahid Siddiqui, featuring actor Mahira Khan who recited Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s Bol. The famed performer received a Lifetime Achievement award for her contribution to culture.

Actor Ahsan Khan then took the stage with model Amna Ilyas for their #MeinBhi performance. The movement, initiated by PR mogul Frieha Altaf, aims to include several human rights violations and encourages everyone to show support by saying Mein bhi aap ke saath hoon (I also stand with you). Many school children also performed with the two stars.

PHOTO: PUBLICITY

The show opened with rapper Ahmed Ali Butt who introduced screenwriter Vasay Chaudhry on stage and the two kick started the awards together, bringing classic comic relief to the scene. First up, were the music awards which were followed by the fashion awards before the ever so brave Mukhtar Mai presented Frieha with a Lifetime Achievement Award for her contribution to the fashion industry. In her acceptance speech, Frieha quoted Asma Jahangir to show her support for the #MeinBhi campaign, ‘Mein woh aadhi gawahi hon jo poori gawahi ko paida karti hai.’

PHOTO: PUBLICITY

Next up were singers Ali Azmat and Sahir Ali Bagga who took charge of the stage and provided the audience with an unforgettable experience by incorporating traditional instruments such as the duff, dudak and baghlama in their performance.

After that, some stars were ushered into a ‘confession box’ which Ahmed and Vasay lead with some tongue in cheek commentary as per. They asked them a series of questions to which the stars had to respond truthfully. These included the likes of Noman Ijaz, Mahira and Mawra.

Ahsan, once again, took center stage but this time, with Mahira. The two performed a little couple dance on Mahira’s famous Zaalima, before announcing the TV awards. Once the awards were presented, Ahmed took it upon himself to pick the two best dressed celebs with the audience’s help. Musician Abrarul Haq and makeup maestro Nabila of Nabila’s Salon were the two favourites.

PHOTO: PUBLICITY

This was followed by Sarmad Khoosat’s speech for Asma Jahangir. The human rights lawyer was honoured with a special award for contribution and service to the country which daughter Muneezeh Jahangir accepted. The film awards followed.

After that, a mini competition was held where the audience was to guess how many Lux girls there are. The lucky guesser won an Iphone X for her correct answer after which all the Lux girls that were in attendance were called on stage – Meera, Sahiba, Nisho, Sangeeta, Mahira and Mawra.

PHOTO: PUBLICITY

The show came to an end with a grande finale, making a huge statement. Thirty six performers with a 40-piece orchestra performed Shehzad Roy’s Kya Darta Hai. Recomposed by Shani Arshad, Kya Darta Hai is set as the anthem for the #MeinBhi movement.

Frieha maintains that Kya Darta Hai will be the campaign’s anthem and be used by several NGOs to promote the human rights angle. With the #MeinBhi movement tackling a variety of issues such as child abuse, sexual harassment, underage marriage, neglect of women’s rights and so on, the LSA closing performance had somewhat of a similar effect in speaking out against social injustices as #MeToo did in Hollywood.

Have something to add the story? Share it in the comments below.